VACATION IDEAS

Vacation Secrets of the American Southwest

Ready for an easy adventure? Head to these stunning southwestern landscapes, where people and the environment have been coexisting (and creating unique lodgings, meals, and public art) for centuries. Welcome to Arizona’s Navajo country, as shot by our intrepid photo editor!

La Posada, in Winslow, was originally the last Harvey House, built in 1929 for the Santa Fe Railroad, and as the years (and locomotives!) sped by, Amelia Earhart, Harry S. Truman and Shirley Temple, all rested their heads here. Now, it is a destination in itself boasting galleries of progressive paintings and a long hallway of sculptures.

(Whitney Tressel)

A prickly pear margarita at the James Beard nominated restaurant, Turquoise Room, at La Posada Hotel in Winslow. Prickly pear, a native plant of the region, turns up in chef John Sharpe's dressings, sauces, and as a substitute for maple syrup on breakfast pancakes.

(Whitney Tressel)

East and West Mitten Buttes in Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park (928/871-6647) are just two of the colorful rock formations you can see from The View hotel. Each of the hotel’s rooms has a private terrace so that guests can witness firsthand the shifting sunlight and shadows of this otherworldly landscape.

(Whitney Tressel)

Author and historian Ann-Mary Lutzik and sculptor Dan Lutzik own, operate, and even live in Winslow’s Snowdrift Art Space.

(Whitney Tressel)

To celebrate Monument Valley’s central place in many Hollywood westerns, The View serves up dishes like the half-pound John Wayne burger, not to mention green chile stew and red chile posole.

(Whitney Tressel)

La Posada’s Turquoise Room serves locally grown foods such as piki breads with hummus, made of blue corn flour with beanstalk ash water poured over a piki stone, handmade by Joyce Saufkie of the nearby village of Second Mesa.

“Twin Arrows,” is a popular roadside art installation about halfway between Winslow and Flagstaff.

(Whitney Tressel)

Petrified Forest National Park boasts sprawling rock formations and petrified wood—look closely in certain spots, such as Newspaper Rock, for ancient petroglyphs that give you a sense of how long people have been bonding with this landscape.

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